Separable fastener



May 24, 1932. N. J. POUX SEPARABLE FASTENER Filed Aug. 22. 1929 Noel d. Foux INVENTOR.

A TTORNEY V Patented May 24, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE NOEL J. POUX, OF MEADVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO HOOKLESS FASTENER COMPANY, OF MEADVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA SEPARABLE FASTENER Application filed August 22, 1929. Serial No. 387,599.

This invention relates to separable fasteners of the slider controlled type and particularly to a novel construction of interlocking members therefor.

An object of the invention is to provide novel interlocking members which can be manufactured economically and which will have increased factors of strength, security, flexibility and ease in looking and unlocking.

Another object of the invention is to con struct such interlocking members of successive pieces of wire, with simple tools, with- I out requiring buifing or other finishing operatlons.

Other objects of the invention are to decrease the weight and bulk of the interlocking members, and to provide a novel construction for clamping them to the corded edge of a stringer with improved holding power.

separable fastener interlocking members are usually provided with cooperating projections and recesses, so that when two series of such members are brought together by the progressive movement of a slider the projections of one series will enter the recesses of the opposite series, thus locking the two parts together until they are again unlocked by the reverse movement of the slider.' In some forms, all the interlocking members of one series are provided only with projections and those of the opposite series only with recesses, but usually the interlocking members of both series are provided with projections as well as recesses since this enables all the members to be made alike, with the same tools.

The cost of the recess and'projection types of interlocking members is increased due to the frequent breakage of expensive punches and dies which are employed in their manufacture, and which are necessarily of delicate construction in order to form the small intricate shapes of such members. In some constructions the large amount of metal surrounding the recesses and projections, and

' the large percentage of waste in the metal from which the members are punched also add to the cost of production. Additional expense is entailed in the finishing operations to remove burrs and other irregularities. Furthermore, the weight and bulk of most interlocking members of this type precludes their use on various light weight article such as garments of very fine texture.

These difliculties are overcome by the presit cut invention which provides a novel construction of interlocking members embodying an entirely new interlocking principle, According to a feature of the invention, instead of cooperating recesses and projections, the interlocking members are simply provided with a pair of projections'or fingers which extend outwardly in difi'erent directions and interlock with projections or fingers of the opposite series. In a fastener embodying the invention, the interlocking members on both stringers are all alike, and resemble the letter Y with the stem clamped to the stringer and the diverging fingers extending outwardly toward the opposite stringer.

In one form of the invention, the interlocking members are made of successive pieces of wire which are bent in the middle for pinching onto the corded edge of a stringer, and which have the free ends staggered in different longitudinal directions to constitute the interlocking fingers. The ends of these fingers may be formed with, enlarged Heads to increase the holding power of the fastener when interlocked. The intermediate bent portion of the wire is preferably flattened to increase the holding power on the corded edge of the stringer. In another modification of the invention the interlocking members are punched from flat strip material with one end having compressible jaws for securing same to the corded edge of a stringer, and the other end slit in the middle with the portions on either side of the slit bent in opposite directions to provide diverging flat interlocking fingers.

This construction of opposite diverging interlocking fingers is conducive to lateral flexibility because the sloping surfaces of the 'coacting fingers provide the required facility also economical of material since they can be made from successive pieces of wire or fiat strip material with practically no waste. The

interlocking members are also easily attached to the corded .edge of a stringer. The tools used in forming the members are very simple in construction and are not subjected to severe strain in the punching and forming op erations, and hence may be used indefinitely without replacement. The necessity ofbuffing or other finishing operations is eliminated, since the extreme simplicity 'of the interlocking members enables them to be punched out and bent to shape without the formation of burrs or sharp edges. The reduced weight and bulk of the interlocking members enables a fastener to be constructed with less weight per unit length of stringer than heretofore. The field of application of the interlocking members is therefore widened because a light weight fastener of this type can be used on garments and other articles of very thin material where relatively heavy fasteners, having much greater total metal, would be objectionable.

The various features and advantages of the invention will be described in connection with the particular embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

30 Fig. 1 is a plan view showing a section of an assembled fastener embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of one series of interlocking members showing one method of attaching the tape Fig. 3 shows a wire blank from which the interlocking member is formed;

Fig. 4 is a side view showing the wire blank with its intermediate portion flattened;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the blank shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a plan of the wire blank bent in opposite directions to form the engaging fingers;

Fig. 7 is a transverse section of one stringer showing one of the interlocking members clamped thereon;

- Fig. 8 is a side view of the device shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a section of a fastener illustrating a modification of theinvention;

Fig. 10 is a transverse section through a stringer having a modified form of interlocking member clamped thereon; and

Fig. 11 is a side view of the device shown in Fig. 10.

The fastener shown in Fig. 1 comprises a 6 pair of flexible stringers havinglongitudinal o cords 1 attached to the abutting edges of the tapes 2. The interlocking members 3 areclamped to the corded edges of the stringers. The slider 17, having diverging channels, is movable up and down along the stringers by means of any suitable pull member (not view showing the free ends shown) to engage and disengage the inter locking members. The slider may be of any suitable type, such as that disclosed in Sundback Patent 1,661,144, dated February 28, 1928.

The interlocking members 3 shown in detail in Figs. 7 and 8 consist of a compressible loop or U-shaped portion 4 which is clamped upon the corded edge of the stringer, and diverging projections or fingers 5 and 6 disposed in different longitudinal planes and extending outwardly. The projection 5 is shown sloping upwardly and the projection 6 sloping downwardly toward the opposite stringer.

The successive steps in forming the interlocking members 3 from straight wire are illustrated in Figs. 3 to 8, inclusive. Fig. 3 shows a straight wire blank from which such an interlocking member is formed. Inslicing the blanks from a long wire the ends are preferably rounded as shown. The wire blank is first. preferably deformed intermediate its ends by means of a punch which forms the intermediate flattened portion 4, wider than the free ends of the blank, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The free ends 5 and 6 of the wire blank are next bent in opposite directions at an angle to the central flattened portion 4, as shown in Fig. 6, so that when the member is bent to U-shape with the flattened portion4 compressed upon the cord '1, the ends or fingers 5 and 6 will extend in opposite directions longitudinally of the cord, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

The formed blanks of the shape shown in Fig. 6 may either be fed directly to presses which bend the intermediate flattened portions 4 to U-shape and at the same time clamp them upon the cord 1, or else they may first be partially bent and then slipped over the cord 1 at the desired intervals and finally compressed upon the cord.

The cord 1 with the interlocking members 3 clamped thereon may be connected to the tape 2 in any suitable manner, one method being illustrated in Fig. 2, wherein some of the warp or longitudinal threads are omitted in weaving the tape 2, leaving only the weft threads 7 in the center of the tape. The same result can be obtained by connecting two separate lengths of tape by means of strings instead of the weft threads 7. After the interlocking members 3 are clamped upon the cord 1, the interlocking fingers'5 and 6 are inserted between the transverse threads 7 where the warp threads are omitted. The tape 2 is then folded over upon itself and the folds stitched together at 8, thus securing the parts of the stringer together as a unit, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

When the fastener is closed, as shown in Fig. 1, the interlocking members 3 are directly opposite each other on the two stringers. The fingers of each interlocking member extend. 1n dlverglng relation at angles to member also cross thefingers of the opposite member and thus prevent the fastener from being disengaged by side strain. The appearance of the interlocked fastener is the same whether viewed from the front or back of Fig. 1. The smooth sloping surfaces of the fingers 5 and 6, facilitates locking and unlocking, and also enables the members to ride easily on one another when the fastener is subjected to transverse strain, thus cumulatively increasing the locking effect.

In the modification of the invention shown in Fig. 9, the free ends of the interlocking members 3 are enlarged and slightly flattened to provide ball shaped heads 9. When the fastener is locked, the heads 9 engage, as shown, and provide a more positive interlock.

In the construction shown in Figs. 10 and 11 the interlocking members 10 are punched from a fiat strip of metal by means of punches which form clamping jaws 11 on one edge for engaging the corded edge 12 of the tape 13, and also form a slit 14 extending part way through the middle of the blank from the other edge. The portions on opposite sides of the slit 14 are bent in opposite directions to provide interlocking projections or fingers 15 and 16. In this form of the invention the stringer may be constructed by sewing or otherwise attaching the cords 12 directly to the edge on opposite sides of the tape 13, the interlocking members then being clamped to the completed stringer. Interlocln'ng is accomplished in the manner described above in connection with Fig. 1.

The invention is not limited to the particular modifications herein shown and described since many different changes may be made in the details of construction without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

The invention claimed is:

1. A separable fastener comprising a pair of stringers having opposed series of interlocking members adapted to be progressively engaged and disengaged, each member having an attaching portion for securing it tothe stringer and fingers extending in diverging relation at angles to-the longitudinal edge of the stringer and in planes on opposite sides of and parallel to the plane of the'stringer adapted to interlock with similar engaging means on the opposite stringer.

2. A separable fastener comprising a pair of stringers having opposed series of interlocking members adapted to be progressively engaged and disengaged, each member having an attaching portion for securing it to the stringer and a pair of interlocking fingers extending in diverging relation from the edge of the stringer and in planes on opposite sides of and parallel to the plane of the stringers, each interlocking member in one of said planes crossing an interlocking member of the opposite stringer in'the other of said planes when the fastener is closed.

3. A separable fastener comprising a pair of stringers having cooperating interlocking members each havlng a compressible portion for clamping same to'a stringer, and a pair of fingers extending from said compressible portion, said fingers diverging from each other at angles to the edge of the stringer for engagement between similar fingers on the opposite stringer, each of the fingers being substanfiallyhuniform in cross section throughout its engt j 4. A separable fastener comprising a pair of stringers having cooperating interlocking members each having a plurality of projections with enlarged free ends extending outwardly at acute angles to the edge of the stringer for engagement between projections of similar members on the opposite stringer.

5. A separable fastener including a pair of stringers having cooperating interlocking members each comprising a wire bent upon itself and connected at the bend to the edge of a stringer, the ends of said wire extending in straight lines outwardly in divergin relation for engagement between the en s of similar members on the opposite stringer. I

6. A separable fastener interlocking member composed of wire bent in the middle to clamp it to a stringer and having its free ends bent in diverging relation at obtuse angles to the middle bent portion for engagement between the ends of similar opposite members.

7. A separable fastener interlocking member composed of wire having a portion bent and deformed for connection to a stringer and having-a pair of substantially straight projections extending in different directions at acute angles to the stringer for engagement between projections of similar opposite members, each of the projections being substantially uniform in cross section throughout its length.

8. The method of making a separable fastener interlocking member which comprises bending the free ends of a wire blank in different directions and then bending said blank substantially in the ing to a stringer.

9. The method of making. a separable fastener interlocking member which comprises flattening an intermediate portion of a wire blank, bending the free ends of said middle for clampblanks in different directions, and then bending said intermediate portion substantially to U-shape.

Signed at Meadville, in the county of Crawford, and State of Pennsylvania, this 15th day, of August, A. D. 1929.

NOEL J. POUX. 

